Johann Christoph Arnold

People have come to expect sound advice from Johann Christoph Arnold, an award-winning author with over 1.3 million copies of his books in print in more than 20 languages.

A noted speaker and writer on marriage, parenting, and end-of-life issues, Arnold is a senior pastor of the Bruderhof, a movement of Christian communities. With his wife, Verena, he has counseled thousands of individuals and families over the last forty years. His books include Their Name Is Today, Why Forgive?, Rich in Years, Seeking Peace, Cries from the Heart, Be Not Afraid, and Why Children Matter.

Arnold's message has been shaped by encounters with great peacemakers such as Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, César Chavez, and John Paul II. Together with paralyzed police officer Steven McDonald, Arnold started the Breaking the Cycle program, working with students at hundreds of public high schools to promote reconciliation through forgiveness. This work has also brought him to conflict zones from Northern Ireland to Rwanda to the Middle East. Closer to home, he serves as chaplain for the local sheriff's department.

Born in Britain in 1940 to German refugees, Arnold spent his boyhood years in South America, where his parents found asylum during the war; he immigrated to the United States in 1955. He and his wife have eight children, 44 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. They live in upstate New York.

Author Updates

How can we revive the forgotten virtue that is the key to educating children? Arnold believes we can only hope to instill respect and empathy in children if we ourselves first regain an appreciation for the qualities children inherently possess.

Arnold recounts events in Marion and Selma, Alabama in the spring of 1965 when civil rights protester Jimmie Lee Jackson was beaten to death. Although shaken, fellow protesters including Jackson's parents refused to respond with hatred and revenge.

As Europe reels from the events unfolding in France, there could hardly be a more timely story than that of Christian de Chergé, a French monk murdered by Islamic extremists. Sensing his approaching death, he wrote a letter forgiving his murderers. . .